Arrival of the Traveler (Waldgrave Book 1) (21 page)

“I thought it would look good with the one you have…” Ava smiled, leaning her chin on her hand.

“Thanks, mom. It’s gorgeous.”

Howard gave her a somewhat larger box, and winked at her as she opened it. A new pair of shoes.

Lena’s eyes snapped up in surprise. “How did you—?“

“Family tradition. My dad used to do it for us; Aaron said a long time ago that he was going to do it for you, too.”

Mrs. Ralston appeared at the door between the kitchen and the living room, carrying a plate of cupcakes. An envelope was sticking out of her apron pocket.

“Ah, thanks Mrs. Ralston!”

After setting down the cupcakes, she handed Lena the envelope. Lena started to open it, but Mrs. Ralston tapped her hand with another piece of paper. Lena looked up; Mrs. Ralston was smiling sweetly—almost smugly—as Lena took it from her.

“I told you, I’m letting you out of classes early.” She said.

Lena smiled in surprise as she opened the paper. It was a home-printed graduation certificate. 
Really?

Mrs. Ralston nodded. 
Really. But don’t get complacent, or I will start remedial lessons.

Lena nodded solemnly.

The cupcakes were passed out, and Lena started to open Mrs. Ralston’s card. It was a simple birthday card with a traditional greeting on the front. But when she opened it, airline ticket vouchers fell out.

I called in a few special favors. Send me a postcard. I’m told the shoes are all the fashion in Sydney.

Love, Howard, Mom, and Mrs. Ralston

“Uncle Howard, you rock!” She got up to hug him. Perhaps a little too tightly, but he didn’t seem to mind.

“Now, it wasn’t all me!” Howard laughed. “Mrs. Ralston agreed to take you…and your mom is going too. You’re welcome.”

Lena couldn’t stop smiling. She looked back at the vouchers; a trip to Australia…

“This is legal? I mean, I can actually tell people we’re going?”

“As long as Mrs. Ralston is with you. I made some phone calls, and you’ll be staying with the Masons. Try not to cause trouble.”

At the end of breakfast and cupcakes, she gave another round of hugs, and then went back up to her room to call Hesper about her trip to Australia. When she walked into her room, she saw the cat sitting on her bed, with a paper-back sized box in front of it. The cat, on seeing her, ran from the room. Lena approached the package cautiously. She read the note on top without touching anything.

For your secrets. Happy Birthday.

She opened the paper quietly, and found a small, empty journal. It was blue, with a sort of family crest printed on the front—silver horned cats arranged in a triangle. Inside the cover, there was an inscription in Latin in the same handwriting. Lena thought back to another journal she’d once found, and lost, that was of similar size and language. She sighed.

I guess I’ll have to learn Latin…

She picked up her cell phone and called Hesper. The phone rang twice before she picked up.

“Happy Birthday, you crazy kid! Did you get the card?”

Lena smiled. “I haven’t opened it yet, but thanks.”

“He sent a card too. I read it. You really need to read it.”

“Hesper!”

“What? You’re telling me you wouldn’t?”

“Well, you’re not supposed to tell the person you did it!” Lena went and retrieved her stack of envelopes, several of which appeared to be courtesy cards sent by people who knew her grandfather. There were cards from Bianca and Alexis, and two from the Colburn residence—one of them was probably from Devin. She found the card with the Corbett’s return address and tried to rip it open one handed.

“Okay. Pretend I didn’t say that, then.”

Lena ripped the envelope open, quickly read Hesper’s card, and then moved on to Griffin’s. To her eyes, it was just a birthday card…much to her relief, Griffin still signed everything with ‘Sincerely.’

“What am I looking for here?”

“You don’t think it’s cute? He’s so cute when he does that. He was nervous and everything when he wrote it. You can’t tell that he was nervous?”

“No.” While Lena had become slightly better with her abilities, she was not the Silenti that Hesper was. She probably never would be. Lena pushed the thought out of her mind in favor of something happier.

“I’m going to Australia next month. Think you can talk your parents into letting you go?”

There was laughter at the other end. Lena didn’t need to be a mind reader to know the thoughts that were running through Hesper’s mind. Staying up all night. Surfing. Flirting with cute, ignorant humans who didn’t care about politics or religion, and maybe even dancing the night away with a few of them. It would be a spectacular waste of time, and Lena was greatly looking forward to sharing it with the first best friend she’d ever made.

Hesper finally calmed herself enough to reply. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I assume you’ll be staying with the Masons?”

“How did you know?”

“Oh, I’ve got my sources. They’re really nice, though. Not the types my parents really want me hanging around, but nice. Hey, hold on a sec, the Boy Wonder wants to talk to you.” She tried to keep her voice enthusiastic, but Lena heard her falter. She hadn’t been enjoying life as much since Griffin had moved in.

Panic shot through Lena. Having just won her freedom, she was in no hurry to lose Howard’s trust. Again. “Hesper, don’t! I’m not supposed to—“

A deep, arrogant tone cut her off. “Happy birthday, Princess.”

“Griffin!” Lena felt herself blush. She wondered if she should hang up the phone.

“So, you missed me. That’s good to know.”

“I have not! And give the phone back to Hesper before—“

“You get in trouble and lose your precious trip to Australia?”

“That’s annoying. Quit it, and give the phone back.”

Griffin laughed. “Well, I see I’m not invited then. I couldn’t have come anyway. Master Daray wants me there at Waldgrave while you’re gone.”

Lena felt herself blush again. “It’s not that you’re not invited. We’re not supposed to be talking. Communicating. Contacting each other in any manner. You especially.”

“But you like talking to me.”

“I like Hesper more.” Lena walked to her closet, mostly to muffle her voice in case someone happened to come to her door, and started grabbing clothes that looked trendy and travel-appropriate. She grabbed several blouses, piled them on the bed, and started to pick through them for the ones that Hesper would approve of.

Griffin went on. “So you don’t want to talk to me at all then? It’s been so long, and I never really got to check up on you after the incident. Go with the blue—you always looked great in blue.”

Lena grabbed the blue blouse off the hook and rolled her eyes. “Okay, smarty-pants, you win. You’re a genius at this and I’m not worthy of the family name.”

“Just sharing an opinion.”

“You mean showing off. Give the phone to Hesper before I get you in trouble.”

“Well, well. Somebody hasn’t been doing her research.”

“And what does that mean?” Lena put a hand on her hip.

“Silenti are officially adults at age sixteen, so you can now call me at all hours of night and day like I know you’ve been wanting to. But since you seem in no mood to discuss the details, I’ll give you back to Hesper.”

“Griffin, wait!”

Hesper’s voice answered. “Hello? No, he’s gone. I think he’s got a meeting—that’s been happening a lot lately.”

“Am I an adult?” Lena asked anxiously.

“Is this a theoretical discussion?”

“Hesper!”

“You mean, technically? Yeah, I guess so. Congratulations, you can now be tried as an adult in our legal system. Woohoo.”

Lena sat down on the bed and thought. What rights did she garner now that she could use to her benefit?

“Is Griffin coming back? He said something about coming here while we’re in Australia.”

“I doubt it. The Council wouldn’t let it happen. It’s one thing for the two of you to talk, but you pose too much of a threat living in the same house. A lot of them probably don’t even want you to talk, but indiscriminate contact with other members of the community is one of our basic rights. He’ll probably leave before you get back.”

“Can I leave?”

“No. The Council probably won’t let you.” Hesper said dryly. “For good reason, as I’m hoping you’ve figured out.”

Lena? Are you available?

Lena looked back at her bedroom door. “I’ve got to go, my keeper wants me.”

In the background, Lena heard Griffin yell something.

Hesper sighed. “Griffin says you need to take your new journal with you. I don’t know what that means. Later.”

“Yeah, bye.” Lena hung up the phone. She picked up the blue journal her grandfather had given her and tossed it in with her clothes. 
Yeah. What is it?

I need to talk to you about something—meet me in the study.

Lena walked the long hall and made a left into the room at the far end. Howard and Ava were seated in a couple of the plush reading chairs in front of the desk, both looking very serious. A new door had appeared on the right side of the room.

Lena pointed at it. “Is there a spiral staircase behind that door? The one that goes up to the third floor?”

Howard glanced briefly over at the door. “Sure.”

This response usually meant that the guess was wrong. Lena made a mental note to check it after the impending lecture was over.

“If she can’t even navigate the house yet, how can you possibly think this is a good idea?” Ava crossed her arms, stood up, and walked to the window. She gazed out in her usual effort to look dramatic.

“She might never gain that ability, and she’s learned enough that she’s not getting a mental shock anymore. Lena, do you have any interest in politics?”

“Politics?” Lena sat down in the chair her mother had vacated. “This isn’t about Griffin, is it?”

Howard shrugged. “It is, a little.”

“I’m sorry. I know I should have just hung up, but it was really just a few seconds, and Hesper said that I’m a legal adult, so—“

Howard raised his hand to silence her. He wasn’t smiling. “As long as it happened today, you’re within your bounds. You’re old enough to make those decisions for yourself now. But this is about family representation. I want to name you as my heir for legal reasons.”

“Like what?” It came out in a ruder tone of voice than she had intended. It was flattering, but a huge surprise—she hadn’t exactly given him reason to trust her. Lena’s only experience with the naming of an heir was Griffin, and up to this point, she had thought it was a process reserved exclusively for males.

“Now, I can’t make any promises,” Howard said simply. “But I think it could work. As my legal heir, you’d still be my legal responsibility, but you’d be entitled to make decisions independent of the will of your grandfather. Even though he can’t force you into the marriage, he does retain the right to make your life a living hell if you don’t go willingly. You could also attend the Council meetings and have a hand in the decisions that control your life. Master Daray has an influence on his situation, and I think it’s only fair that you do too. At the very least, you’d inherit the remaining Collins’ earthly possessions.”

“Earthly possessions?” Lena repeated.

Howard shrugged. “There’s a trust fund, and that’s probably the only thing with real monetary value. Family photos. Your grandfather’s old archeological tools, and ownership of some of the items he recovered. Most of them are in museums now, or on display here in the house. Master Daray laid claim to some of the Silenti artifacts, which he’s squirreled away somewhere here.” Howard glanced around the ceiling, as if he suspected the old man might have hidden some of them in the very walls. “My mother’s house would be in your care as well, in the event of my death. But I’m planning to sell it soon, because it’s too much trouble to maintain in addition to everything here. I suppose you would also get my music, wardrobe, books, and a very fine collection of Sunday comic clippings from my youth. Stuff like that. The main value for you will be the access to the Council, and the influence you could gain over your situation.”

Lena looked at her feet and nodded.

“It will never stand.” Ava turned and looked directly at Lena, who looked back at Howard—it had sounded too good to be true.

Howard nodded his head back and forth. “A woman has never been an heir or a Representative, and if I name you, you will inherit the position upon my passing. There’s nothing in the law that says I can’t do it, but your approval is dependent on a forty-percent vote of Council assent.”

Ava glared. “As your mother, I’m telling you not to do this.”

“She is your mother, and you should consider that, but you are of legal consenting age and the decision is yours.” Howard said with finality.

Lena looked from Ava’s face, bleached by the light coming through the window, to Howard, who was watching her eagerly. “What are my chances? Do you think they would vote a girl in?”